The system operates below atmospheric pressure, minimizing leak risks

Sep 26, 2012 14:34 GMT  ·  By

Most people don't have a reason to care about data centers, the so-called “server farms” responsible for the continued availability of all the world's websites, but that shouldn't stop them from taking a look at the new cooling technology designed for them.

Cooling is one of the things that consume the most power in a data center or server. Knowing that such clusters waste around 90% of all the power they eat, coming up with better solutions is a priority.

The California Institute for Telecommunications and Information Technology (CALIT2) at the University of California San Diego is demonstrating one such solution: the negative-pressure liquid cooling system.

A rack-based, direct-to-the-chip, leak-free technology, it can be tailored to any server and is driven by both a pump and natural circulation.

One of the key benefits is that the lower than atmospheric pressure minimizes the effects of leaks. Instead of coolant escaping, the outside air will try to get in instead.

Maintenance is easy as well. When a server or two need to be removed or changed, there is no need to shut down the whole system.

Flometrics, the developer of the cooling technology, made sure that the Cool-Flo pumps, derived from rocket engine-cooling technology (NASA-approved), had a no-drip hot swap connector.

"Not only is there an advantage of power reduction by 25 to 35 percent, but you are lowering existing CPU temperatures by 30 degrees Celsius, resulting in practically unlimited density," explained CEO of Flometrics, Steve Harrington.

"Cool-Flo is a good fit for Calit2’s server needs given the institute’s commitment to reducing the energy intensity of campus IT and improving energy efficiency." By reducing the air conditioning requirements, the system power needs are cut down compared to conventional cooling solutions. The lower power needed to run the servers, as a result of the minimized CPU energy loss to heat, helps achieve that.